C Difficile Alert

Recent advances in Clostridium difficile-associated disease

Link: Recent advances in Clostridium difficile-associated disease -- Monaghan et al. 57 (6): 850 -- Gut.

The main purpose of this article is to review recent developments in the management of acute and recurrent Clostridium difficile-associated disease, with consideration of existing and new antibiotic and non-antibiotic agents for treatment. Details of the current developmental stage of new agents are provided and the role of surgery in the management of severe disease is discussed. Infection control measures considered comprise prudent use of antimicrobials, prevention of cross-infection and surveillance. Other topics that are covered include the recent emergence of an epidemic hypervirulent strain, pathogenesis, clinical presentation and approaches to rapid diagnosis and assessment of the colonic disease.

Battle against hospital bugs must intensify - icWales

Link: Battle against hospital bugs must intensify - icWales.

MORE must be done to fight dangerous infections in hospitals and clinics, the Assembly Government will be told today.

Evidence shows you have a higher risk of getting an infection after surgery in Wales than in any other part of the United Kingdom.

Nearly a fifth (18%) of all infections take place after surgery.

The report – by the Assembly’s cross-party audit committee – claims: “This is a higher proportion than in England (13.8%), Northern ireland (13.8%) and Scotland (15.9%), although it is lower than in the Republic of Ireland (21.5%).

The National Public Health Service estimates that the annual cost of infections in Wales is £50m.

There is evidence that C-difficile infections “increased significantly” in Wales between 1993 and 2005.

However, the report notes that, overall, Wales has had more success than England or Scotland in fighting infections.

While 6.4% of all patients in Welsh acute hospitals suffered an infection, this is less than England (8.2%) and Scotland (9.5%). Wales is out-performed by the Republic of Ireland (4.9%) and N. Ireland (5.4%).

Potentially Deadly Infection Doubles Among Hospital Patients Over Last Five Years, USA

Link: Potentially Deadly Infection Doubles Among Hospital Patients Over Last Five Years, USA.

The number of hospital patients stricken by an infection that can lead to diarrhea, blood poisoning and even death increased by 200 percent between 2000 and 2005, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The sharp upturn follows a 74 percent increase in the number of cases between 1993 and 2000.

The infection - Clostridium difficile, or C. difficile-associated disease - results after previous antibiotic therapy suppresses the normal bacteria of the colon. This allows growth of Clostridium difficile following exposure by unwashed hands or infected surfaces such as bedpans, toilet seats, or floors. Symptoms can range from mild diarrhea to severe, life-threatening illness that, in its most severe form, can be treated only by completely removing the colon.

AHRQ's analysis also found:

- There were over 2 million cases of C. difficile in U.S. hospitals between 1993 and 2005.

C.diff developing resistance to key drug

Link: C.diff superbug kills one patient in British hospitals every hour| News | This is London.

However, last week the Department of Health said that the battle against such superbugs was being won, claiming that C.diff infections in England had fallen by eight per cent between October and December 2007.

But according to the Panorama investigation, the way cases are counted has changed, and experts calculate that the real figure is actually between 16 and 35 per cent higher than the official rate.

Among the most serious concerns of scientists is that these figures reflect a mutation and strengthening of the superbug. Only two antibiotics can treat C.diff, and research has revealed that it has developed partial resistance to one of them.

Ironically, measures brought in to combat MRSA in hospitals are actually contributing to the spread of C.diff.

According to Professor Brendan Wren, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, alcohol handwashes, which are now used in 94 per cent of hospitals, encourage the growth of C.diff spores.

C diff figures escalate - UK 10 times worse than any other nation

Link: AFP: Superbug deaths on the rise in British hospitals: report.

Hospital deaths due to the superbug clostridium difficile among over 65-year-olds in Britain occur at ten times the rate of any other country, a report said Sunday.

The findings to be aired in a BBC Panorama Special: How safe is your hospital? on Sunday evening suggest that the superbug is not only mutating and getting stronger but also vehemently resisting drugs aimed at trying to arrest its growth.

C.difficile is responsible for the deaths of four times as many people as MRSA, with the equivalent of one person every hour dying in hospitals due to the superbug.

Despite an announcement this week saying infections due to c.difficile declined by 8 percent between October and December 2007, experts have estimated that the real figure is higher by 16 and 35 percent.

Scotland recorded a 10 percent rise in such cases while Northern Ireland witnessed a rise of almost 36 percent. Comparable figures for Wales is still not available, though Britain as a whole remains bottom of the world league.

C diff figures fall but questions remain

Link: Hospitals: MRSA Figures On The Rise Once More |Sky News|Health.

Meanwhile, although figures for the bug Cdiff bug showed an 8% drop, to 9,872 cases in patients aged 65 and over for the same period, the HPA warned that the data may not be accurate.

But, the HPA warned, the data might be incomplete because of changes to how NHS trusts reported their C diff figures and it could not be sure the fall accurately reflected the current situation.

29 catch C Diff in Winchester

Link: Patient Dies From Superbug (from Hampshire Chronicle).

WINCHESTER health chiefs are battling a outbreak of a deadly superbug which has killed one patient at the hospital.

Since the beginning of February, 29 patients at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital have been infected with the potentially fatal Clostridium difficile.

Managers say one elderly frail woman died after contracting the bug. The others survived and are said to be recovering.

Disease control measures explained to N Ireland patients

Link: Disease control measures explained - Londonderry Today.

THE Chief Executive of the Western Health and Social Care Trust, Elaine Way, this week issued reassurances around the effective prevention and management of Clostridium Difficile in all its health and social care environments - including Altnagelvin, where three deaths from the disease have occurred in the past year. What is the Trust doing to prevent infection by C difficile? "We are continuing to remain vigilant following the outbreak of the C. difficile 027 strain in the Northern Trust area," she said, adding: "The Western Trust is remaining vigilant and doing all that it can to prevent and manage any spread of infection throughout all our health and social care environments. Our highly skilled and committed Infection Prevention and Control Team continue to work very closely with frontline staff to ensure the consistent and rigorous application of evidence-based infection prevention and control techniques."

C diff registery call in Canada

Link: The Whig Standard - Ontario, CA.

Dr. Michael de la Roche is dead on the money when he says hospital officials across Canada should make it public when their facilities are invaded by killer superbugs like C. difficile. Quinte Health Care's chief of the emergency department and infection control, de la Roche said it is essential that the statistics be kept in a central registry so that health authorities can keep track of the progress of these bugs, which are showing up in hospitals and some nursing homes with alarming frequency.

New dress code to help combat C Diff in Ulster

Link: ::: u.tv :::.

Strict dresscode regulations for Northern Ireland healthcare staff were introduced today in an effort to reduce the risk of another superbug outbreak.   The deaths of 36 patients have been linked to a recent c-difficile infection in the northern trust area.

Doctors and nurses must now adhere to stringent new rules regarding their clothes both inside and outside hospitals.

Health minister Michael McGimpsey also proposed a number of restrictions on hospital visits.